Super Bowl Odds: Bengals Legend Willie Anderson Discusses Super Bowl Chances
Last year’s Super Bowl run was a magical one for the Cincinnati Bengals. They became only the second team in NFL history to go from bottom-3 on the preseason Super Bowl odds market to the Super Bowl. Now sportsbooks are looking at them as favorites.
Kyle Newman - August 12, 2022, 4:42 PM EDT
5 minutesSuper Bowl Odds: Bengals Legend Willie Anderson Discusses Super Bowl Chances
Last year’s Super Bowl run was a magical one for the Cincinnati Bengals. They became only the second team in NFL history to go from bottom-3 on the preseason Super Bowl odds market to the Super Bowl, only the Greatest Show on Turf Rams had done it before. Now sportsbooks are looking at the Bengals like they’re the favorites, and things change.
Bengals Super Bowl Odds
The Bengals are now given +2200 odds to win the Super Bowl. That has them tied for the 10th best odds in the NFL. That's a major boost from last year when they were given +15000 odds. To put that into perspective, their preseason chances of winning the Super Bowl have jumped from a 0.7% chance to a 4.3% chance. Meaning their chances are six times better than they were at this time last year.
However, things aren't going to be easy. The competition is fierce the Bengals are given +1200 odds to win the AFC, that's only the sixth-best odds in the conference. Their 7.7% chance to return to the Super Bowl looks weak compared to the Buffalo Bills' 22.2% chance, +350 odds. In fact, four teams are given at least a 10% chance to win the AFC. So, while the Bengals are Considered an elite team this year, they're still a hill to climb.
Even in their own division, the Bengals have a way to go. Cincinnati is given +200 odds to win the AFC North, a strong 33.3% chance. That's a massive improvement on the +2500 odds they were given last year. Still, they trail the Ravens who are given +160 odds to win the division.
Hearing From a Bengals Legend
OddsChecker had the opportunity to interview Bengals legend, Willie Anderson, about his thoughts on the team, and if he believed enough had been done to get them over the hump.
“They replaced three guys. That’s a huge changeup. They listened to everybody who understands, and to me it’s good to see they made an effort to do that. I remember when the Colts did everything they can to put talent around Peyton Manning. With quarterbacks you have to do that, you have to build your team. You’ve got a great quarterback you have to give him the things he needs to put up more points than his opponents. They needed for Joe (Burrow) to be more upright in the pocket. He needs more time. We would have games with 9 sacks allowed and he’d still perform at a high level. Now Imagine if those are only 3 sack games. I think on paper, this organization did what they needed to do. They went out and got three really good guys who are going to bring a mentality that they haven’t had since some of those good Marvin Lewis teams. Now I think with the guys they added and the skill they have, they’ve done what they needed to do.”
- Willie Anderson
Bettors share some of that optimism. Over the last 30 days, 4.5% of bets have been placed on the Bengals to win the Super Bowl. That places them eighth on the odds market, which is slightly better than sportsbooks view them. So, it is clear that bettors do believe that the books are still underestimating the Bengals.
Super Bowl Odds
Team | Odds | Implied chance |
|---|---|---|
Buffalo Bills | +650 | 13.3% |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers | +750 | 11.8% |
Kansas City Chiefs | +1100 | 8.3% |
Green Bay Packers | +1200 | 7.7% |
Los Angeles Rams | +1200 | 7.7% |
Los Angeles Chargers | +1500 | 6.3% |
San Francisco 49ers | +1600 | 5.9% |
Denver Broncos | +1800 | 5.3% |
Dallas Cowboys | +2000 | 4.8% |
Cincinnati Bengals | +2200 | 4.3% |
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